Fated reborn - Chapter 247: Chapter 247
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Luciano's Pov.
A few minutes later, there was another knock at the door, softer this time, and I sighed, dragging myself up to open it. The maid was back, this time balancing two trays instead of one. She dipped her head respectfully, eyes fixed somewhere around my chest.
“Alpha Luciano, I brought fruits for you and dinner for Beta Victor,” she said, holding out the trays.
“Thanks,” I muttered, taking them both and stepping back to let her leave. She moved quickly, disappearing down the hall without another word. I nudged the door shut with my foot, turning back to find Victor watching me, one brow lifted.
“Didn’t know I was staying for dinner,” he said, smirking a bit.
“Figured you might as well,” I grumbled, shoving one of the trays at him and dropping back onto the bed with the bowl of fruit. He chuckled, settling back into the chair and digging in without further complaint.
For a while, we just ate in silence, the room quiet except for the soft clink of silverware and the occasional sigh. I bit into an apple slice, trying to ignore the way my mind kept drifting back to the garden, back to her. It didn’t help that her scent was still clinging to my clothes, faint but enough to make my chest feel tight.
“So,” Victor started after a bit, voice muffled around a mouthful of roast, “how’s the pack doing?”
I shrugged, swallowing a piece of peach and leaning back against the headboard. “About as good as can be expected,” I said. “No issues on our side, just the rogues testing their luck again.”
He snorted, spearing a piece of meat with his fork. “Lucky for them they didn’t run into me,” he muttered. “Would’ve saved us some trouble.”
I rolled my eyes, smirking a bit despite myself. “You’ve been itching for a fight since last week,” I shot back, and he just grinned, sharp and unrepentant.
“Can’t help it,” he said, leaning back in the chair, fork dangling between his fingers. “Sitting around doing paperwork all day’s killing me.”
“Yeah, tell me about it,” I muttered, running a hand through my hair. “Had to go through a stack of it this morning before—” I cut myself off fast, teeth clicking shut, but Victor’s smirk only widened, eyes narrowing with interest.
“Before what?” he asked, all casual-like, but I could see the glint in his eyes, could feel the trap springing shut around me.
“Nothing,” I said quickly, a bit too quickly, shoving another piece of fruit into my mouth to shut myself up.
“Uh-huh,” he drawled, grinning wider. “Right. Absolutely nothing to do with a certain someone and a garden, I’m sure.”
I choked a bit, scowling as I glared at him. “Shut up,” I snapped, but the heat creeping up my neck probably ruined the effect.
Victor just snickered, leaning back with a lazy grin. “Man, you’re too easy,” he said, shaking his head. “Bet half the pack’s already noticed.”
I groaned, dragging a hand over my face. “You’re the worst,” I grumbled, and he just laughed harder, the bastard.
After a bit, he settled, the smirk slipping into something more serious. “Nah, but really,” he said, eyes flicking to mine. “How’s she doing? Haven’t seen her much since…” He trailed off, brow furrowing, but I knew what he meant.
“She’s… okay, I think,” I said slowly, running a thumb over the edge of the bowl. “Talked a bit more today. Didn’t seem too mad, at least.”
He hummed, shoving the last of his dinner into his mouth and chewing slowly. “That’s good,” he said after a moment, voice a bit quieter. “Better than last week, at least.”
“Yeah,” I muttered, picking at a grape but not really tasting it. “Guess so.”
The sun dipped lower outside, shadows stretching long across the floor, and we lapsed into a comfortable sort of silence, just talking about the pack, about business, about anything to fill the quiet. I leaned back, eyes drifting to the window, the sky bleeding from gold to orange to deep purple.
Eventually, Victor pushed up with a sigh, stretching until his shoulders popped. “Well, I’ll leave you to your moping,” he said, smirking when I shot him a glare.
“Yeah, yeah,” I muttered, waving him off. “Get out already.”
He chuckled, clapping me on the shoulder as he passed. “Try not to overthink it, man,” he said, tone a bit softer. “Pretty sure she doesn’t hate you.”
I scoffed, rolling my eyes. “Real reassuring,” I deadpanned, and he snorted, shaking his head as he slipped out the door, pulling it shut behind him.
The room felt quiet after he left, shadows thick and heavy in the corners. I blew out a breath, raking a hand through my hair and leaning back on the bed. But the silence only made my mind wander more—back to the garden, to the way her hand felt in mine, warm and soft, fingers curling just a bit before she pulled back.
“Ugh,” I groaned, scrubbing a hand over my face. This was stupid. I was being stupid. I needed a distraction—something to get my head on straight.
I pushed up, stripping off the rest of my clothes and heading for the bathroom. The light flickered on with a soft hum, and I twisted the shower handle until steam billowed up, hot enough to sting. I stepped in, letting the water pound against my back, dragging a hand through my hair and trying to wash the tension out of my shoulders.
But even with the water scalding hot, I couldn’t stop thinking about her—about the way she looked at me, eyes soft but sharp, like she was trying to figure me out and not sure if she liked the answer. I groaned again, thinking my head lightly against the tile.
“Get it together, idiot,” I muttered, scrubbing a hand over my face and forcing myself to focus on washing up instead of the way her lips twitched when she tried not to smile.
When I finally stepped out, the room was full of steam, mirror fogged up. I swiped a hand over it, staring at my reflection for a long moment, water dripping down my face and neck. My eyes looked too dark, too tired, and I sighed, raking a hand through my hair before grabbing a towel and heading back to the bedroom.
I flopped onto the bed, not even bothering to pull the covers up, eyes fixed on the ceiling. The air was cooler now, the sun fully set, but my skin was still warm, the ghost of her scent clinging to my shirt where it lay crumpled on the floor. I dragged a hand over my face, groaning softly.
I wasn’t even sure what I was supposed to do—how I was supposed to talk to her without making a complete fool of myself, without stumbling over every word like an idiot. It shouldn’t be this hard, shouldn’t make my chest feel tight and my head feel light, but every time she looked at me—
I blew out a breath, scrubbing a hand over my face. This was dumb. I was being dumb.
But even as my eyes drifted closed, exhaustion tugging at the edges of my mind, I couldn’t help but think of her—of the way her fingers felt against mine, hesitant but warm, the soft curve of her smile and the way it made something in my chest ache and settle all at once.
Eventually, I slipped under, the darkness pulling me down slow and steady, and even then, her eyes were the last thing I saw.
A few minutes later, there was another knock at the door, softer this time, and I sighed, dragging myself up to open it. The maid was back, this time balancing two trays instead of one. She dipped her head respectfully, eyes fixed somewhere around my chest.
“Alpha Luciano, I brought fruits for you and dinner for Beta Victor,” she said, holding out the trays.
“Thanks,” I muttered, taking them both and stepping back to let her leave. She moved quickly, disappearing down the hall without another word. I nudged the door shut with my foot, turning back to find Victor watching me, one brow lifted.
“Didn’t know I was staying for dinner,” he said, smirking a bit.
“Figured you might as well,” I grumbled, shoving one of the trays at him and dropping back onto the bed with the bowl of fruit. He chuckled, settling back into the chair and digging in without further complaint.
For a while, we just ate in silence, the room quiet except for the soft clink of silverware and the occasional sigh. I bit into an apple slice, trying to ignore the way my mind kept drifting back to the garden, back to her. It didn’t help that her scent was still clinging to my clothes, faint but enough to make my chest feel tight.
“So,” Victor started after a bit, voice muffled around a mouthful of roast, “how’s the pack doing?”
I shrugged, swallowing a piece of peach and leaning back against the headboard. “About as good as can be expected,” I said. “No issues on our side, just the rogues testing their luck again.”
He snorted, spearing a piece of meat with his fork. “Lucky for them they didn’t run into me,” he muttered. “Would’ve saved us some trouble.”
I rolled my eyes, smirking a bit despite myself. “You’ve been itching for a fight since last week,” I shot back, and he just grinned, sharp and unrepentant.
“Can’t help it,” he said, leaning back in the chair, fork dangling between his fingers. “Sitting around doing paperwork all day’s killing me.”
“Yeah, tell me about it,” I muttered, running a hand through my hair. “Had to go through a stack of it this morning before—” I cut myself off fast, teeth clicking shut, but Victor’s smirk only widened, eyes narrowing with interest.
“Before what?” he asked, all casual-like, but I could see the glint in his eyes, could feel the trap springing shut around me.
“Nothing,” I said quickly, a bit too quickly, shoving another piece of fruit into my mouth to shut myself up.
“Uh-huh,” he drawled, grinning wider. “Right. Absolutely nothing to do with a certain someone and a garden, I’m sure.”
I choked a bit, scowling as I glared at him. “Shut up,” I snapped, but the heat creeping up my neck probably ruined the effect.
Victor just snickered, leaning back with a lazy grin. “Man, you’re too easy,” he said, shaking his head. “Bet half the pack’s already noticed.”
I groaned, dragging a hand over my face. “You’re the worst,” I grumbled, and he just laughed harder, the bastard.
After a bit, he settled, the smirk slipping into something more serious. “Nah, but really,” he said, eyes flicking to mine. “How’s she doing? Haven’t seen her much since…” He trailed off, brow furrowing, but I knew what he meant.
“She’s… okay, I think,” I said slowly, running a thumb over the edge of the bowl. “Talked a bit more today. Didn’t seem too mad, at least.”
He hummed, shoving the last of his dinner into his mouth and chewing slowly. “That’s good,” he said after a moment, voice a bit quieter. “Better than last week, at least.”
“Yeah,” I muttered, picking at a grape but not really tasting it. “Guess so.”
The sun dipped lower outside, shadows stretching long across the floor, and we lapsed into a comfortable sort of silence, just talking about the pack, about business, about anything to fill the quiet. I leaned back, eyes drifting to the window, the sky bleeding from gold to orange to deep purple.
Eventually, Victor pushed up with a sigh, stretching until his shoulders popped. “Well, I’ll leave you to your moping,” he said, smirking when I shot him a glare.
“Yeah, yeah,” I muttered, waving him off. “Get out already.”
He chuckled, clapping me on the shoulder as he passed. “Try not to overthink it, man,” he said, tone a bit softer. “Pretty sure she doesn’t hate you.”
I scoffed, rolling my eyes. “Real reassuring,” I deadpanned, and he snorted, shaking his head as he slipped out the door, pulling it shut behind him.
The room felt quiet after he left, shadows thick and heavy in the corners. I blew out a breath, raking a hand through my hair and leaning back on the bed. But the silence only made my mind wander more—back to the garden, to the way her hand felt in mine, warm and soft, fingers curling just a bit before she pulled back.
“Ugh,” I groaned, scrubbing a hand over my face. This was stupid. I was being stupid. I needed a distraction—something to get my head on straight.
I pushed up, stripping off the rest of my clothes and heading for the bathroom. The light flickered on with a soft hum, and I twisted the shower handle until steam billowed up, hot enough to sting. I stepped in, letting the water pound against my back, dragging a hand through my hair and trying to wash the tension out of my shoulders.
But even with the water scalding hot, I couldn’t stop thinking about her—about the way she looked at me, eyes soft but sharp, like she was trying to figure me out and not sure if she liked the answer. I groaned again, thinking my head lightly against the tile.
“Get it together, idiot,” I muttered, scrubbing a hand over my face and forcing myself to focus on washing up instead of the way her lips twitched when she tried not to smile.
When I finally stepped out, the room was full of steam, mirror fogged up. I swiped a hand over it, staring at my reflection for a long moment, water dripping down my face and neck. My eyes looked too dark, too tired, and I sighed, raking a hand through my hair before grabbing a towel and heading back to the bedroom.
I flopped onto the bed, not even bothering to pull the covers up, eyes fixed on the ceiling. The air was cooler now, the sun fully set, but my skin was still warm, the ghost of her scent clinging to my shirt where it lay crumpled on the floor. I dragged a hand over my face, groaning softly.
I wasn’t even sure what I was supposed to do—how I was supposed to talk to her without making a complete fool of myself, without stumbling over every word like an idiot. It shouldn’t be this hard, shouldn’t make my chest feel tight and my head feel light, but every time she looked at me—
I blew out a breath, scrubbing a hand over my face. This was dumb. I was being dumb.
But even as my eyes drifted closed, exhaustion tugging at the edges of my mind, I couldn’t help but think of her—of the way her fingers felt against mine, hesitant but warm, the soft curve of her smile and the way it made something in my chest ache and settle all at once.
Eventually, I slipped under, the darkness pulling me down slow and steady, and even then, her eyes were the last thing I saw.
End of Fated reborn Chapter 247. Continue reading Chapter 248 or return to Fated reborn book page.